theglobaljournal.net: Latest activities of group GLOBAL+5

Poll now open for public vote on visionary GLOBAL+5 projects

2012-11-13T10:47:31Z

A distinguished Jury last month chose a handful of prizewinners from a shortlist of 19 projects selected as finalists in the inaugural GLOBAL+5 competition. The first ever festival of global governance, GLOBAL+5 was conceived by The Global Journal to identify and draw attention to concrete ideas and projects focused on addressing the most pressing challenges at a global level over the next five years.

The Global Journal now invites the general public to look into these projects and cast a vote for the projects that seem most relevant and promising to each of you, no matter in which part of the world you live. Which projects do you think could have the greatest ability to empower and engage citizens? Which present innovative solutions promising the most impact?

Below is a simple step-by step guide through the voting process:

Go to www.theglobaljournal.net

Log in (if you are already a member), or sign-up to become a registered user of The Global Journal platform

Click on GLOBAL+5 on the main menu bar (center right)

Choose a project that catches your eye and then click on the button on the lower right of the photo (you will find the projects featured in the photo gallery) – to view all 19 projects at once, you may click the ‘Other Photos’ button above the main picture

Read as many as you like

Rate the best projects

Comment on any project and throughout the website

Each of the projects featured at GLOBAL+5 has the power to stimulate innovation and contribute to our collective attempts to address the most pressing global challenges in the next five years.

Thank you for your becoming a part of the solution and happy voting!

MANTRA Indian Sanitation Project Wins GLOBAL+5 Grand Award

2012-10-10T19:06:06Z

MANTRA, a sanitation program transforming rural livelihoods in eastern India, last night won the Grand Award at GLOBAL+5, the first ever festival of global governance organized by The Global Journal in Geneva. Receiving the award from Angela de Wolff (President of Sustainable Finance Geneva) before a packed international audience at the Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues, MANTRA leader Joe Madiath expressed his surprise that a project focusing on the unglamorous issue of sanitation "could lead to such a big prize." The MANTRA model has reached almost 1,000 villages in India, reducing waterborne diseases by 80 percent and empowering communities to take charge of their own development path.

The awards ceremony began with remarks from the former Prime Minister of Greece, George Papandreou, speaking on behalf of his fellow GLOBAL+5 Jury. Emphasizing how difficult it had been to choose between the project finalists, Mr Papandreou noted that "every single one showed a spirit of hope, a spirit of optimism, a spirit of innovation, and a spirit of energy." Reflecting more broadly on the role of global governance in responding to global challenges, he evoked the European Union "experiment" and his own experience leading Greece during the current debt crisis to suggest Europe would "play a major role in humanizing globalization, or else globalization will dehumanize Europe."

Three other exciting projects received prizes at the ceremony. The GLOBAL+5 Impact Award, presented by Karin Hagemann (Director for Public Sector, International Organizations & Civil Society at KPMG) was won by The Working World. Based in Argentina, Nicaragua and the United States, the NGO has developed an inspired alternative finance model to provide low-interest, no-collateral loans to support the creation and growth of sustainable worker cooperatives running recovered enterprises.

The GLOBAL+5 Innovation Award was presented by Fred Dust (Partner at global design consultancy IDEO) to Deepwater Project, an initiative based around a unique solar-powered scientific voyage to explore the effect of climate change on the Gulf Stream. Accepting the award, project leader Martin Beniston (a Nobel laureate for his work with the Intergovernmental Panel on Cimate Change), reminded the audience that despite being overshadowed in recent times by economic issues, global warming had not gone away and required increased public attention.

The GLOBAL+5 Empowerment Award was presented by Eva-Maria Nag (Executive Editor of the Global Policy Journal) to the social movement Russia Behind Bars. Co-founded and led by Olga Romanova, a prominent journalist and member of the anti-Putin opposition, the group continues to fight bravely against corruption in the justice system in Russia, while advocating for lasting legal reform.

The Jury also used its discretion to highlight three additional projects deserving of a ‘special mention’. Announced by David Held (Professor of Politics and International Relations at Durham University), these were: Discovering Hands, an innovative German program training blind women to detect the early signs of breast cancer through their heightened sense of touch; Sustainable Infrastructure Fund, a project that aims to attract institutional investment to drive sustainable infrastructure policy; and Peace for Mexico – Mexico for Peace, a new grassroots campaign supporting civic initiatives challenging the culture of narco-violence in Mexico.

Each of the projects featured at GLOBAL+5 have the power to stimulate innovation and contribute to our collective attempts to address the most pressing global challenges in the next five years. Further details can be found on our website.

Stay tuned for the opportunity to vote online for your favorite project.

(Photo © Ziyoda Kurbanova for The Global Journal)

Papandreou Joins GLOBAL+5 Jury

2012-10-03T11:25:26Z

Former Greek Prime Minister, George Papandreou, and other renowned global actors join the Jury of GLOBAL+5 for the first ever festival of global governance.

The Global Journal is proud to announce the launching of GLOBAL+5, the first ever festival of global governance to be held from 9-10 October at the Four Seasons Hôtel des Bergues, in Geneva. GLOBAL+5 is a unique and exciting opportunity to identify and award innovative and visionary projects, addressing some of the most pressing global challenges the world will be facing in the next five years. The platform is a powerful force for individuals, groups and organizations from the public, private and non-profit sectors to exchange their ideas and catalyze positive change.

Twenty projects out of 75 selected projects have made the final-cut for the competition. The Global Journal has asked the Jury to focus on the potential impact of each project over the next 5 years (+5), the ability to empower and engage citizens, and the innovation that will drive enthusiasm and support for stakeholders. Our next Press Release will be dedicated to the projects in more detail.

The Jury consists of leading global actors from a wide variety of backgrounds. The former Greek Prime Minister, George Papandreou, will be the keynote speaker at the awards ceremony.

The esteemed jurors are:

Mr. Jacques Attali, French economist, writer and senior civil servant
Mr. Thomas Biersteker, Director, Programme for International Governance, IHEID
Ms. Laurence Boisson de Chazournes, Director of International Law and International Organization, UNIGE
Mr. Paul Clements-Hunt, Founder, The Blended Capital Group
Mr. Fred Dust, Partner, IDEO
Ms. Jo Guldi, Historian Junior Fellow, Harvard Society of Fellows
Ms. Karin Hagemann, Director, Public Sector, International Organizations and Civil Society, KPMG
Mr. David Held, Professor of Politics and International Relations, Durham University
Mr. Pascal Lamy, Director-General World Trade Organization
Mr. Peter Marsh, Manufacturing Editor, Financial Times
Ms. Eva-Maria Nag, Executive Editor, Global Policy Journal
Mr. George Papandreou, former Prime Minister of Greece
Ms. Angela De Wolff, Founder & CEO of Conser Invest

The specially selected Jury will convene to assess projects and discuss them with representatives in Geneva on 9 October, while the final results will be announced at a concluding press conference on 10 October.

GLOBAL+5

2012-10-02T18:02:39Z

The Global Journal announces GLOBAL+5, a unique opportunity to identify innovative and promising projects addressing the most pressing global challenges for the next five years.

The event will take place on 10-11 October 2012 in Geneva, where a selection of projects will be presented to a specially convened jury: the 'Global Shadow Cabinet'. This body will be composed of leading international thinkers and decision-makers from a variety of backgrounds.

The projects address topics ranging from democracy and global governance to sustainable competitiveness and energy security. With our core commitment to all issues and players of global governance in mind, The Global Journal will shortlist projects that have a local, regional or international impact. All projects must be submitted to The Global Journal by 30 August 2012 in order to be considered.

Shortlisted projects will be presented to the Global Shadow Cabinet on 10 October 2012 and awards will be granted to the best projects on the final day of the event. These will also be featured in a special end of year edition of The Global Journal.

The composition of the Global Shadow Cabinet as well as the first selection of projects to be presented at GLOBAL+5 will be announced on 15 September 2012.

For more information on GLOBAL+5 or to submit projects, please visit The Global+5 website.

The Global Journal team remains at your disposal for any further information.

First Global SNCF Mobility Index Launched in Berlin

2012-10-02T17:45:59Z

The transport industry’s leading trade fair, InnoTrans, was the site today of the launch of the inaugural Global SNCF Mobility Index. A unique collaboration between The Global Journal and French rail company SNCF, the data-driven index features in-depth analysis of mobility challenges facing over 60 governments around the world.

The Global SNCF Mobility Index is part of the GLOBAL+5 initiative, the first ever ‘festival of global governance’ that will take place in Geneva on 9-10 October 2012. GLOBAL+5 participants will discuss and vote on innovative projects and ideas that help to solve global challenges over the next 5 years.

“The Global SNCF Mobility Index is the first in-depth attempt to better understand the sustainability of mobility of goods and people on a country-level. This will hopefully be a tool for decision-makers to approach this topic in a more holistic manner,” said the Index’s author, André Schneider.

Published by The Global Journal, The Global SNCF Mobility Index demonstrates how transport systems can act as both drivers and barriers to sustainable development, linked closely to environmental, societal and economic factors. A per-country tool and set of rankings integrating global and regional perspectives, the index aims to drive discussion about the evolving mobility challenges that policy-makers will need to grapple with in the next five years. The publication has a deliberately wide scope, with a focus on 66 countries encompassing three important sub-groupings: the European Union, the G20 and the BRICs.

More specifically, The Global SNCF Mobility Index assesses: the impact of economic performance on mobility; the stresses generated by population growth, urbanization growth and demographic evolution on regional and urban mobility; the environmental impact of mobility systems and infrastructure; and the likely effect of future investment strategies on existing trends.

While the first edition of the index presents a broad range of mobility data and analysis – in the process raising a number of important questions about the wisdom of certain national-level policies – Schneider identifies two key emerging challenges that will require dedicated action in the years ahead. Firstly, transport volume and distance is growing faster than GDP, both globally, and for half of the G20 countries. This points to an important future bottleneck for the global exchange of goods. Secondly, CO2 emissions from transport grew for 58 of the 66 countries reviewed during the period 2000-2008, suggesting the sector represented a significant challenge to achieving the emissions reductions sought under the Kyoto Protocol.

To download the GLOBAL SNCF MOBILITY INDEX go to: